Phantomenia
"I must be cruel, only to be kind; Thus bad begins, and worse remains behind." - Hooflet, Act 3 Scene 4, spoken by Phantomenia to Mare Do Well. Origin Phantomenia is the odd result of a phoenix egg being dropped into the same magic pool that grew the changeling tree. As a result she shares their darker color scheme, which sets her apart from other phoenixes, and shares the changelings’ thirst for emotions. Unlike changelings she does not consume emotions but rather basks in them in the same way that other phoenixes bask in the warmth of a fire or the sun. After hatching and escaping the area around the changeling lair, she ended up following a group of ponies through the woods where the ponies were attacked by some changelings. Realizing that she would have no food, she pursued the changelings and stopped them. The ponies then traveled on to Manehattan with Phantomenia in tow. There, while looking for a place to stay she came upon an elderly blind pony, who she became affectionate towards. However that relationship was not meant to last and he was killed during a mugging. Phantomenia quickly hunted down the perpetrator, but then realized that killing him would not bring her friend back, and would just soil another source of feelings. She realized she has to be preventive in order to stop such things from happening, so that the city would be protected, her crop kept safe. She must help the police root out the vines that strangle the city from within, and defend her crop from those outside who would reap them. Personality Much like the changelings, her body is built to deceive and destroy and a part of Phantomenia takes visceral pleasure in watching her prey flee before her, basking in their fear and despair. She is a predator with a calculating mind, and long years of experience behind her talons, and yet she is always aware of stepping one step too far and becoming a true monster, nothing more than what she hunts. She cares for her flock, but sometimes wishes she could join them, pass among them, instead of always being separate, something different, a curiosity at best, and a threat at worst. Perhaps she can find such kinship in others like her, the ones who are separate. Due to her age, such desire has long been hidden away, along with her wrath, bottled up where it can't be found. Her wrath burns cold, a knife in the dark, a fall from a rooftop, an unfortunate sandbag, there is no honor in killing, only precision. She is tricky, and mischievous at first glance, but such an exterior hides an idealistic, perhaps affectionate side, that determined her deeds for hundreds of years, and likely will determine more for years to come. Relationships Police: perceptions of Phantomenia vary greatly, some see her as a monster that stalks the streets, looking for victims, others see her as an omen of crime. Open confrontations are rare as she usually disappears before the police can even draw weapons. A couple have suspicions that she is more than a monster, as her targets rarely are law abiding citizens, and victims almost always survive an attack. Criminals: almost all of them view Phantomenia as a monster, or as she is commonly called “the Crow”. The night can’t hide you and bullets can’t stop her. If you see her, you run and hope she gets the pony next to you. Do deals fast, because the longer you wait, the more likely it is she will show up. Speak on the phone, crows can’t use phones. Changelings: the bane of her crop, they cause it to wither and die. She hunts them without mercy should they enter her territory, using her emotional sense to pick them out. They are parasites, nothing more. Though she recognizes that she cannot go toe to toe with the leaders and so does not openly confront them, she picks at the changelings horde, one by one if they ever cross paths. Mare Do Well: Phantomenia takes great interest in this pony, perhaps because she is a single point of light in the dark, unlike the many lights of JLE. Phantomenia watches this pony's back, perhaps because few others will, and the death of such a being would make Phantomenia's job much more difficult, as she has no means to remove dangerous relics that might cull hundreds, or thousands at a time. She understands the importance of Mare Do Well's task, along with her identity. She follows Mare Do Well because she sees this chance as an opportunity for friendship, something Phantomenia has in scare supply and values greatly. Inari: Phantomenia once met Inari in the Frozen North, where Inari helped trap the darker side of Phantomena's personality. However Phantomenia is aware of Inari's betrayal and is cautious, should such a thing happen again. She does acknowledge Inari's thoughts and fears, since they are reflective of her own, but Inari still makes her uneasy. Category:Hero